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Captain Derek A. Dobogai
U.S. Army
Captain Derek A. Dobogai was killed on August 22, 2007 when a Blackhawk helicopter carrying fourteen soldiers crashed in a mountainous region of northern Iraq while in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. CPT Dobogai, four helicopter crew members, and nine other soldiers all perished in the crash. Originally from Fon du Lac, WI, CPT Dobogai was 26 years old at the time of the crash.
Derek Dobogai was a Western Illinois University alumnus and earned his commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army in 2003 from the WIU Reserve Officer’s Training Corps (ROTC).
Derek had a distinguished undergraduate career at Western Illinois as a member of the ROTC Bulldog Battalion. While at Western, Dobogai was ranked as the No. 14 Army ROTC cadet in the nation among more than 4,000 cadets. At the May 2004 commissioning ceremony, Dobogai was named the recipient of Western’s Colonel Leo W. Manning Outstanding ROTC Cadet Award, which recognizes the year’s top graduating military science department cadet, based on academics, military commissioning with assignment into a combat arms branch or military police corps, a record of high achievement in ROTC, and significant extracurricular and community involvement.
Dobogai also competed in athletics at Western in 2001 and 2002. He was among the top Leatherneck cross country runners and ran the steeplechase in track. He earned his Bachelor’s of Science degree in Law Enforcement and Justice Administration in 2003.
Derek was a U.S. Army Ranger School graduate and a U.S. Army Airborne School Graduate. He also earned the distinction as the “Lieutenant of the Year” for the 25th Infantry Division based in Hawaii. Dobogai served combat tours in Afghanistan as well as in Iraq, and he had recently been selected to the U.S. Army Special Forces, known as the Green Berets.
Captain Dobogai’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal (Posthumous award), two Army Commendation Medals, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal w/ Bronze service star, Iraq Campaign Medal w/ Bronze service star, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Infantryman Badge, Ranger Tab, Parachutist Badge, and Air Assault Badge.
Derek was survived by his parents, David and Lisa Dobogai, and two brothers, Daniel and David. Derek is buried at his home in Fon du Lac, WI and is also interred in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA in a group burial with his fellow soldiers also killed in the helicopter crash.
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